Beschreibung
It was non-renewable fossil fuels that made possible what has been referred to as the “great experiment” of the industrial civilization. Given that the non-renewable resources on which this experiment was based are becoming more and more difficult and costly to extract, it is surely safe to say that the next great experiment will be one in which the transition to renewable resources is the crucial task. This presentation will critically discuss on whether the concept of “experiment” can deliver new insights for the 21st century energy transition under way. Whereas experiments are open ended and set up to produce surprises, transforming the energy system towards sustainability is a clearly goal oriented and normative activity. In order to illustrate cultural foundations of coping and perhaps even creatively dealing with the tension between unavoidable surprise and the hope to still arrive at a well-received end result the presentation will use results from several research projects on renewable energy systems and participatory planning. (Speaker's Abstract)